20 Great Songs From The Movies Is On “The Playlist”

Sunday saw Hollywood’s best be crowned kings and queens of the past year. The winners were all worthy, but there were cases for some that they have been snubbed. The best example of snubbing was the category for Best Original Song – only 2 songs were nominated! In the history of the Academy Awards, that is the least amount of nominees in a category that has existed since 1934. Is there less and less “Movie Music” these days? Lets look at some of the best in history with this week’s version of “The Playlist”.

Great Movie Music can bring images of the film into a great light – by a certain scene, or setting the tone with the opening, or wrap up a great flick with the right music. Many list have come out over the years to recognize those songs that now classics thanks in part to the movie they were in. Trying to limit this version of The Playlist to just 20 has been a daunting task. Take for example Evanescence, who became huge thanks to the movie Daredevil with “Bring Me To Life“. Look at Josh Groban, whose song from The Polar Express is now a holiday classic (“Believe“). 2 great songs and they will not make The Playlist!

The 20 I have chosen represent past Oscar winners and nominees, along with former #1 hit singles, and songs that are forever associated with the movie (like Jamiroquai with “Canned Heat” in the dance scene of Napoleon Dynamite for example – and yet not on The Playlist).

The Playlist will be open to major scrutiny, so feel free to add or dispute these choices at your leisure, but here is my 20 choices of great Movie Music in no particular order:

Irene Cara — “Fame” (we remembered her name, and so did Oscar in 1980 as the Best Song)

Alanis Morissette – “Uninvited” (1999 Grammy winner for Best Song for Visual Media from City Of Angels. Never was suppose to be a single for release from the soundtrack, and it became a Top-3 Pop hit for Alanis)

Eminem – “Lose Yourself” (A first as a rap song wins an Oscar in 2002, and showed that Marshall Mathers has some acting chops in 8 Mile)

Sarah McLachlan – “When She Loved Me” (tells Jessie’s story in Toy Story 2, a 1999 Best Song Oscar nominee, never a hit for Sarah but a song that brings a tear when you hear it)

Bruce Springsteen – “Secret Garden” (this is a great example how a movie made a hit as The Boss had the song out for over a year, Jerry Maguire picks it up and made it a Top-15 Pop hit in 1996)

John Travolta / Olivia Newton-John – “You’re The One That I Want” (Olivia’s “Hopelessly Devoted To You” was the Oscar nominee from Grease in 1978, but this is the one everyone remembers)

Duran Duran — “A View To A Kill” (cannot have this list without a James Bond song, and I may catch hell for not picking They Spy Who Loved Me or Live and Let Die, but this video was all over MTV and helped drive this Bond installment heavily)

The Knack — “My Sharona” (the reason why this song became a hit a 2nd time in the 90s was because of Reality Bites. The former #1 smash from 1979 found its way back on the radio in a big way in 1994)

Simple Minds – “Don’t You Forget About Me”(The Breakfast Club – do I have to say any more than that? I’ll add a #1 smash in 1985 that we don’t forget!)

Survivor – “The Eye Of The Tiger” (Stallone had that, and got it back in the rematch with Clubber Lang in Rocky III which was a 1982 Best Song Oscar nominee)

Chad Kroeger and Joesy Scott — “Hero” (the #1 hit from Spiderman for the front-men of Nickleback and Saliva respectfully took on a different meaning after 9/11)

Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes – “I’ve Had The Time Of My Life” (the 1987 Oscar winning song is a classic 25 years later from Dirty Dancing)

Bryan Adams — “Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman” (3 songs from movies in the 90s were #1 hits worldwide for Adams, but this one from Don Juan DeMarco was a 1995 Oscar nominee and one of the biggest hits of his career)

Ray Parker Jr. – “Ghostbusters” (The only call you made around 1984)

Aerosmith — “I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing” (In 1998 this became the band’s biggest hit of their long career thanks to Armageddon in 1998, . This was the 1st #1 hit for the band featuring Steven Tyler, and his daughter Liv was in the scene with Ben Affleck where the song was featured)

Berlin – “Take My Breath Away” (call it the love theme from Top Gun that won the Best Song Oscar in 1986)

Rocky Horror Cast -- “The Time Warp” (the biggest cult classic film has seen this song get more popular over the years. The Rocky Horror Picture Show went from a 1975 dud, to a film in the 80s and 90s you caught at a midnight screening in the theater, and n recently getting the Glee treatment. Getting better with age!)

Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band – “Old Time Rock and Roll” (no song has a greater visual memory that the 1983 scene from Risky Business where Tom Cruise dances, slides and lip-syncs this song in his underwear)

Michael Sembello – “Maniac” (what a feeling Flashdance was, and so was this song from the flick that did win an Oscar in 1983. Sembello’s one-hit wonder was a Best Song nominee that year)

Bee Gees – “Staying Alive” (Saturday Night Fever was the greatest selling motion picture soundtrack of its time, and Travolta’s opening walk in the film to this song is unforgettable!)

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